The Top Malware Threats of 2013

Simda.B Simda.B pretends to be a Flash update, but it’s actually designed to steal administrative rights for a computer. Once that’s accomplished, Simda.B “phones home” to its creators and gives them the user’s passwords. All of them.

Ever since the enterprise adopted Windows, CIOs have been forced to handle all types of security threats. And at one time or another, those security woes have caused a lot of headaches and have dramatically harmed productivity and data safety. It’s unfortunate, but a vital part of the CIO’s job is dealing with security vulnerabilities.

Over the last few years, however, the state of enterprise security has gotten worse. Now, mobile platforms, like iOS and Android, are gaining entry into the corporate world, and malicious criminals are realizing that smartphones and tablets represent a huge opportunity. As CIOs know all too well, as the number and variety of mobile devices multiples, so will the possibility of falling victim to dangerous malware.

The malware situation has gotten so bad, in fact, that network security company Fortinet recently announced that many of the threats the enterprise faces have recently “spiked.” Fortinet’s findings are based on inspections it has conducted across corporate networks.

Don Reisinger is a freelance technology columnist. He started writing about technology for Ziff-Davis' Gearlog.com. Since then, he has written extremely popular columns for CNET.com, Computerworld, InformationWeek, and others. He has appeared numerous times on national television to share his expertise with viewers. You can follow his every move at http://twitter.com/donreisinger.